Dismal Destiny
by zfj
Summary: Was he destined to fail? Was there a purpose in life in such a dark and hopeless time? This is the story of THE epic battle against the androids and how Gohan managed to survive. Mirai timeline. Slight BV
1. Hopelessness

Summary- Was he destined to fail? Was there a purpose in life in such a dark and hopeless time? This is the story of THE epic battle against the androids and how Gohan managed to survive. Mirai timeline.

A/N- I just felt like writing this and I have not given up on my other fics. I hope you all enjoy and please leave a review! This has nothing to do with my enormous story _Bleak Future_. This takes place in the Mirai timeline. Enjoy.

Dismal Destiny

No matter what direction one looked in, all one could see was a wasteland. Just an hour ago, this wasteland used to be a thriving metropolis bustling with important people trying to get to meetings and work, people strolling down streets, and the noises of the city. What was once a large city with a respectable skyline was now turned to rubble. What was not so evident was that a large battle had taken place. Unfortunately this city became a battle ground of epic proportions. The only discernable feature of this wasteland was a young boy staring at what appeared to be a body. There were actually a several bodies scattered across the ground. However there was only one body the boy was staring at. A young boy, age 9, was crying over a fallen warrior, his master and best friend, Piccolo. Ignoring the bruises and cuts the young boy had, all that truly hurt was the pain of losing his friends and master. Each tear that fell from his face and landed on this fallen warrior had a story, a lesson learned or a moment of happiness in his life. It was like the happiness that had built up in his life was pouring out of his body. The boy continued to sniffle and cry over what was no more.

What was once an ordinary trip into the city to gather supplies to bring back to Mt. Paozu where the boy lived ended up being a catastrophe. The boy's mother, Chi Chi and her son went to the city early that morning to try to stock up for the upcoming winter. Living in the mountains had its advantages, but one disadvantage was that it was hard to haul back food for massive appites, clothes, and emergency supplies that were required because weather conditions sometimes made it virtually impossible to stock up. None of that mattered anymore however.

Before this massacre took place, the boy and his mother were at the grocery store purchasing food when they heard what appeared to be an explosion and screams of pain and fear. The boy immediately ran outside against his mother's wishes to see what the commotion was about. Naturally being the son of such an accomplished warrior and hero, the boy wanted to follow in his footsteps. Once outside, what he saw was unbelievable. The tallest skyscraper in the city was falling towards the ground as if it were snapped like a toothpick. There was a huge blast that fractured the entire skyscraper. The top two thirds fell to the ground and created a loud boom. Frighten citizens of ran for cover as another loud blast occurred in the opposite direction of the first fallen building. Instinctively, the boy looked around trying to figure out what was happening. Thankfully both of the blasts were some distance away from where they were shopping.

Not sure what to do, the boy used the skills he acquired through his master. He closed his eyes and tried to sense out what was happening. The two blasts were either from explosives from a planned attack or from what he thought, people using ki to create powerful energy blasts because of the distance and the nature of each blast. The boy immediately ran back inside to find his frighten mother holding onto the cart full of supplies in a daze.

"Mom! I have to see what is happening!" The boy said somewhat scared although wanting to follow in his father's footsteps.

After hearing his son's voice, she came to her senses. She had a very worried look her face. Something was not right. Something was out of place. "Be careful son."

The 9 year old boy nodded his head and ran out of the store to assess the situation. Once outside, he lifted his body into the air. He wasted no time to get as high as he could to see the city in its entirety. Once above the tallest buildings in the city, he noticed that the actual tallest building was no longer standing. He saw huge flames engulf what was left of the building and saw people scrambling to get as far away as possible. He looked in the other direction and saw several buildings reduced to rubble. He knew many had died in the explosion. Flames were engulfing the surrounding area. He tried to look for the culprit. He scanned the ground trying to figure out whom or what was doing this. After a minute of searching he began to grow frustrated not finding anything. He continued to scan but another loud explosion happened. He immediately looked in the direction it was coming from. What he saw was horrifying. A mushroom cloud was forming from a massive explosion. This explosion was far larger than the last two. He immediately began to fly towards the explosion. Once he got to close, the heat began to become too much. He stopped and circled the explosion area to see what was causing this. Still nothing.

Another minute later, a loud explosion rocked the city. The boy perked up and looked in the direction of the explosion. It occurred where he was a few minutes ago. A growing appalling feeling began to grow in his chest. A lump in his throat made itself apparent. That was where his mother just was. He wasted no time and began to fly towards where his mother once was. Using his sensing ability, he tried to sense his mother. Unfortunately it was trying to find a needle in a haystack as there were several people screaming and yelling running away from the explosion. It was a calamity. He landed and saw what was left of the grocery store he was just at minutes ago and began to fear the worst. The feeling in his chest was growing. A tear began to fall as he saw nothing left of the store. Trying to think of what his father would do, there was no time to cry as he needed to stay strong and hope for the best. He had to act fast.

He looked into the air still searching for the culprit. His eyes grew as he saw two dots in the sky. He leaped into the sky and flew towards them. The two dots became discernable as he began to make out two people. The two people, one a young man with long black hair and the other a young woman with blond hair noticed the boy coming towards them. Once close enough he leveled out and met eye to eye.

The two looked at him with interest. The boy continued to stare at them realizing that these two much of have been the culprit. He became baffled as he couldn't sense any life force from these two people. Within seconds, the unknown young man and woman began to smirk.

"You must be Gohan." The young man said with a growing smirk.

The 9 year old boy, Gohan, became even more confused. "What do you want and why have you come here?" Gohan yelled with anger evident in his voice ignoring his greeting.

The young man and woman looked at each other and then back at the Gohan. The young blacked haired man floated slightly closer to Gohan.

"We came to kill your dad" he said. Gohan's eyes twitched at the mention of his father. Just like every enemy that they have encountered, they were after his father.

"He's dead!" Gohan yelled hoping they would just go back to where they came from.

The young man and young woman looked at each other confused. The sole reason they existed was to kill somebody that didn't exist? Something was wrong.

"He was killed by a heart virus one year ago!" Gohan yelled. The two continued to look at each other confused.

After a minute of silence, Gohan looked towards his right. He felt a strong power headed towards him. Within seconds, a warrior with a long white cape flew in front of Gohan. His master and long time friend had arrived. He looked towards his left and saw two others arrive. Yamcha and Krillin, his father's old friends had arrived. Once again, he felt a power level headed towards him. This power was stronger than he had ever felt before. Off in the distance he saw a light glowing getting closer and closer.

"Vegeta!" Gohan said as a smile began to appear on his face. Finally somebody with great power would help us out.

Vegeta, a warrior who was considered an enemy to most had came to help. Finally achieving super saiyan status, the warrior smirked as he saw the young man and woman stare at him. Gohan stared at him in awe. He managed to do what his father did years before.

"Finally some action on this pathetic dirtball!" Vegeta said with excitement. Vegeta turned to Gohan. "What happened here boy?" Gohan sighed.

"You can see! They killed mom…" Gohan said as he looked down. Everybody that arrived looked at Gohan surprised and saddened.

That was all in the past though as Gohan was brought back to reality. The boy sat there on the wasteland thinking about the events prior. Gohan fought the urges to remember the gruesome battle that had just taken place. He continued to sob uncontrollably attempting to come to terms at what had just happened. Were all of his friends dead, maimed in battle against two killer monsters? After several minutes of continued sobbing, the young boy managed to get to his feet beside his master. Another wave of tears came when he saw all of his friends scattered across the ground lifeless.

Krillin, the most powerful human fighter, couldn't even lay a hand on the ruthless monsters. He fell all too fast even with the help of all the other warriors including Vegeta. Yamcha and Tien were scorch in one of the monster's blasts. Even Chiaotzu attempted to destroy one of the androids by self destructing, a skill he tried to use against Nappa years before, but once again failed. Vegeta and Piccolo witnessed the warrior's will and honor as he gave up his life for others.

After an intense duel, Piccolo, one of the greatest warriors, attempted to save his pupils life, once again, by throwing his damaged body in front of a huge blast and was singed and disfigured because of it. His last words were 'you made me proud Gohan' and with a meek smile, he passed on.

What was most unexpected in today's massacre was what Vegeta did. Vegeta watched the powerful warrior, Piccolo fall to his ground after he managed to successfully prevent his pupil, the boy, from being obliterated by the blast. The blast was clearly aimed at the boy and to Vegeta's surprise, even though it was done before when he was the enemy, the Namekian gave up his life so easily for the pipsqueak. Vegeta watched the boy crawl up to the fallen warrior sobbing. Unfortunately, Vegeta knew that there was no time for emotions even though this fallen warrior struck an emotional nerve deep inside of Vegeta. The only two warriors that existed were now himself and the boy? It was then, Vegeta turned his head towards the androids. _Is this really it? Are we all doomed? _

Vegeta attempted to do hand to hand combat with the monster which proved to be a surprise for the unknown warrior who had just killed all of earth's forces. The unknown fighter was even more surprised when he was kicked in the stomach and sent flying towards the ground. However as the minutes passed in the battle, the unknown fighter began to have the upper hand.

Gohan who had now decided to look up and put his emotions to the side, looked up in the sky and with his stained tearful eyes, he watched Vegeta try his best against one of the two fighters. Even trying his best in super saiyan form, he couldn't manage to put any significant damage into the monster. He fell from the sky after a hard kick to his back but managed to land on his feet next to Gohan. The unknown fighter also landed just meters away next to the unknown woman. Strangely enough, the two didn't engage in another round of kicks and punches but instead looked on with interest on one another.

Vegeta turned his head to the boy who was standing right next to his master's body. Gohan avoided direct eye contact. After a brief moment of staring, he turned his head back to the fighter who attacked him. After what seemed an eternity, the unknown fighter put up his defense for another round. Gohan looked on wondering if he should intervene and help Vegeta. He was surprised to see Vegeta not putting up a defense. Had he given up?

"Boy." Vegeta stated plainly. Gohan perked up and looked at Vegeta. Was he talking to him? He decided to respond.

"Uh, yes Vegeta?" Gohan asked with interest. The Saiyan warrior rarely spoke to him even in situations like these. Gohan was now very curious what was on Vegeta's mind. He continued to stare at Vegeta even though Vegeta didn't take his eyes off of the unknown fighter.

After a minute, Vegeta decided to take a risk and turned his head towards Gohan. Surprisingly, he began to walk the few steps to the boy. Vegeta bent down towards the boy. Gohan stared up at Vegeta's eyes. A tear began to form in Vegeta's eyes which stunned the boy. The cold dark eyes were glistening with something so alien to him, emotions. Gohan had never seen this in all the time he knew Vegeta. With each passing second the tear continued to grow and before he knew it, the tear began to trail down his face and cheek.

Vegeta, attempting to control his emotions, realized it was futile because of his time he spent on earth which had unexpectedly softened him. Putting that thought aside, he knew it was time. The tear continued to roll down his face and for the first time, the tear penetrated the rough emotionless skin on his cheek turning it into a soft emotional skin. The sensation of the tear left a trail of emotions. The small stream of emotions poured out having been built up inside for the past several years that he spent on Earth. The woman, his son, and what one could now say, his _friends _created these emotions and made him soft. The single tear continued to his chin and with a few seconds, it built up and began to freefall. It landed on Gohan's forehead as if it was an emotional transfer from warrior to warrior, something that never happened, not with a warrior trained to kill and not think anything of it. Gohan felt the tear hit his head. For the first time that he knew, Vegeta had shown his feelings and he wasn't just a cold hearted killer.

Vegeta, putting aside the emotional display he had just had decided to continue to say what he wanted to say. "Please train my son." Vegeta said slowly in a voice Gohan had never heard from Vegeta. It was full of emotion. He had never asked the boy to do anything of significance before. He wanted the son of his most hated enemy to train his son? Gohan continued to stare into those cold deep eyes which flickered in the light of day because of the buildup of tears.

He continued to go on. "Train my son and tell him that his father will always be proud of him." Gohan digested these words into his soul realizing that he had a purpose now. After such a dark and horrible battle, Gohan had already begun to accept that he was going to fall here like all of the other great warriors. He had given up. Now he had a purpose to stay alive and fulfill.

It was then Vegeta whispered something into Gohan's ear. Gohan made it out to be that he needed to run and hide once Vegeta began battle again. Vegeta turned back to the unknown fighter and realized his time was now.

"But… What about you?" Gohan asked not completely understanding what Vegeta was going to do. Was he about to fight for others? Was he about to give up his life for his enemy's son?

Ignoring the boy's question, Vegeta began to put up a defense. Gohan decided that it was pointless to ask questions and decided to do exactly what Vegeta had asked. He said to not only run and hide, but to stay hidden and train his son. He had a purpose to fulfill.

Gohan stepped back realizing that the battle was about to take place. After a few steps, Vegeta's head twitched. Gohan took note of this wondering what was happening inside Vegeta's head.

"One more thing." Vegeta said rather quickly without even taking his eyes of the unknown fighter. Gohan looked up to the back of Vegeta's head wondering what else he had to say.

"Tell- tell Bulma that I love her and she will always be in my heart."

Another tear fell from Vegeta's eye unbeknownst to the boy. Gohan watched the back of Vegeta when a small glistening dot fell from the top of Vegeta. It landed on the ground between Vegeta's feet. Gohan saw it as more tears began to fall from his own two eyes. In all honesty, he didn't know the word _love_ existed in Vegeta's vocabulary. Vegeta not only gave a tear for his son he spent almost no time with and his, for lack of better terms, his wife? Completely stunned that Vegeta would use that word, Gohan backed off to not only give Vegeta some emotional space but space for the battle. The cold hearted Saiyan Gohan knew showed something that was foreign to him.

Brought back to reality, Gohan continued to stand on his feet trying to think of what he should do next. Everyone was dead. After thinking over what had happened within the last hour, the battle, what Piccolo did, what Vegeta said, he now had a destiny. The boy, putting away his tears, knew that he had act. He picked up the lifeless body of Piccolo and walked over to the body of Krillin. He picked up what was left of Krillin and began to lift in the air. Keeping his emotions built up inside, he knew he didn't have time to sob and cry over the bodies. He flew towards the mountains in the west. He knew where to go, to Capusle Corp. and explain the situation to Bulma.

_Please train my son_. It replayed in Gohan's mind over and over again. The boy he knew as Trunks, Vegeta's son, was to be trained. _How?_ Gohan didn't know exactly where to begin. The boy was only a year old and he was only 9. He would have to wait until he could get to his own two feet. Gohan continued to fly at a slower pace than usual because of the two warriors he was holding. _How will Bulma take it? Will she even want me to train his son? _Gohan continued to try to rationalize his thoughts realizing that training Trunks might be tougher than he thought. _Please train my son. _It was on his mind. He would do the one thing Vegeta asked of him. The boy was half saiyan like himself, so he had to do it. It was in his blood. No matter, he had a destiny now.

A/N- Thank you for reading. Should I go on? I was thinking of a Trunks Gohan friendship bond during the Mirai time or I could end it here and keep it nice and sweet. I am inclined to continue though.


	2. Searching

A/N- 3100 word chapter. Thanks guy for the reviews. Note at bottom with response to reviews. Hope you enjoy this chappie.

Finally making it to Capsule Corp., the boy landed on the soft green grass laying down the lifeless bodies of Piccolo and Krillin. He took a step back and sighed as another tear began to flow from his eyes. He closed his eyes attempting to keep the tear in. He turned his head in the soft wind still trying to come to terms at what had just happened. This had to be some horrible nightmare and he was just about to wake up but he knew otherwise. Gohan had lived in nightmares where he thought he would wake up, but only to find that there was no waking up and it was all real. Somewhat of a realist because of what he has seen in his life, he was accepting that this was just too real to be a nightmare.

It was rather nippy with a breeze coming from the north. Gohan couldn't even feel the chill in the air. Anything and everything else that may go noticed by anyone on any normal day is going unnoticed by Gohan. All other physical feelings are being blocked out by the much more powerful ones, emotions. He hadn't really stopped crying since all of his friends have died, especially Piccolo and to a much larger degree than he thought, Vegeta. Vegeta had still completely surprised him with what he said. '_Please train my son_'kept being played in his head. The depth and emotions expressed when he said that was mindboggling. If any normal person said that, Gohan wouldn't think as much as he did when Vegeta said that. He thought back to those moments.

Vegeta had put up a flawless defense. Gohan watched on amazed at the fighting skill that Vegeta possessed. However amazed he was, he realized that this was his queue to leave. Vegeta powered up to new heights, never sensed before by Gohan. Freeza paled in comparison to Vegeta's new power level. With one more yell, Vegeta charged the fighter. Gohan immediately powered up, and flew off at the exact same time as Vegeta charged the fighter. Gohan didn't look back after that. He had hoped that the surprise of the charge would allow him to escape without the other unknown fighter seeing him. He did not know if the other monster saw him or if she allowed him to escape. Nonetheless, he didn't look back. That was his last time he would ever see Vegeta. Gohan realized that the dark cold prince was going to give up his life for the ones he loved, his son and Bulma.

Using up an enormous amount of energy to escape, Gohan flew off towards the mountains. He landed in wooded area not sure what to do. He was an emotional mess. He decided he would sense the battle from here but he promised himself that he would kill any urge to help Vegeta. He had to for the wellbeing of himself and Trunks. He could feel Vegeta unleashing all of his energy. For nearly 10 minutes, he could feel Vegeta's power level dip and rise again. This had to be one epic battle that was taking place. Gohan lay in the soft grass with towering trees hovering above him. He had his eyes shut trying to sense every movement that Vegeta took in battle. He was far enough from the battle where he was safe yet close enough to truly sense every punch and kick and dip and rise in power level of Vegeta.

Within the process of having his eyes shut and sensing the battle, he dozed off. He wasn't sure when it was but he was tired from the battle earlier and the emotions that he felt tired his body. After 20 minutes, he woke up in a flash. He sat up not sure why he woke up so fast. He realized that he actually fell asleep for a short time. He then flew above the trees and what he saw was terrifying. He saw a huge mushroom cloud in the distance towering over the mountain peaks off to the east where Vegeta was fighting. He then tried to sense Vegeta. His power level was still there but falling. Gohan wasn't sure if he was damaged or possibly worse.

With every second, the power level continued to fall. Gohan began to worry and fought the urge to help him. All too soon, Gohan couldn't even make out the power level. Once again, tears of sorrow, sadness, and anger fell.

This was all in the past though. He assumed that the monsters must have blasted him to bits because he could not find his body when he went to the battlefield much later, the battlefield he had just come from. He sighed as the two bodies lay there on the lawn of Capsule Corporation never to have life again. _What do I do? Why aren't you alive dad? Why did you have to leave me! Why did everybody have to leave me?_ Gohan was lost in thought when the back door of Capsule Corporation opened. Bulma ran outside and was greeted by an awful sight.

She looked at the bodies on the ground. The warrior she knew as Piccolo laid there lifeless with blood all over his body making him hardly look like anything he used to look like. She didn't know much about the mysterious Namek but a tear still began to form. She then looked over to Krillin's body. The tear that was forming began to flow from her eyes down her face. A very good friend of hers, Krillin travelled the world with her and even in Space when they went to fight Freeza four years ago. Instead of the happy exciting full of life Krillin, there lay a lifeless cold Krillin. She finally managed to gather her thoughts. "Wha- What happened?" She stuttered as she put her hands over her mouth in utter shock.

The boy looked at her surprised. _She doesn't know. _Gohan didn't even know where to begin. A 9 year old boy had to tell his father's best friend that everyone she knew and loved had died including Vegeta. As if it was already hard enough to comprehend himself, but now he had to tell Bulma. "They are all dead! Everyone! Mom, Vegeta, Piccolo, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien, Chiaotzu! They killed them all!" Gohan yelled as his anger began to flood his emotions. This time instead of sadness, a different emotion became apparent, anger. Gohan had enough.

Bulma stared at the young fighter letting out his emotions. He yelled and began to power up trying to let the anger escape. Unfortunately because he is a saiyan, those emotions could be very destructive and Bulma knew this. She stood there trying to figure out what to do as the boy continued to let out his emotions.

"I hate them all!" Gohan yelled as tears still flowed from his eyes.

Bulma, already filled to the top of emotional distress, now had to figure out a way to calm the young saiyan down. "Gohan!" Bulma yelled trying to catch his attention.

"That's it!" Gohan yelled. "I am going to make them pay!" Gohan powered up ready to take for the air.

Bulma knew if she didn't act soon, something terrible would happen. She had to act now. "Gohan! Don't you even think about it!" Bulma voiced as she put out a hand out of instinct to try to keep the boy from doing something very destructive.

"I have to! They killed all of my friends! I have to stop them before they kill others!" Gohan continued to yell having a mental battle in his head.

"You- you still have me." Bulma said looking down towards the ground in a much softer voice. She wasn't sure if he heard it. She then looked up. "Gohan! Goku and Piccolo wouldn't want you to throw your life away like this! They wouldn't go into battle without a plan! Think this through!"

Gohan stopped powering up and fell to the ground at the mention of his master and his father. The out of control anger lead to more tears and he lay on the ground face down. He pounded the ground with his fists in such an upset state of mind. He felt that he failed and that others had to give up their life just to keep him alive. _Why? What did I do to deserve this?_

Bulma let out a sigh of relief seeing the boy calmed down to a degree. Bulma walked over to the distressed boy and kneeled down. She got on the ground and patted the boys back. Gohan looked up at one of her dad's best friends.

"Why? Why did this have to happen?" Gohan asked in a much calmer voice. His eyes glistened in the sun light wanting an answer but knowing there wasn't one.

"I- I don't know. Life isn't fair sometimes." Bulma said now hugging Gohan. "Vegeta." Bulma said in a soft voice hugging his best friend's son as another tear began to fall. She remembered the last moments of seeing him. She thought back to what happened.

Vegeta sat at a table in the kitchen waiting for his food. There was a screen with what earthlings called a "show" that was on the counter. The woman had stepped out to attend to the brat for a brief moment but she was still dealing with him. It had been a few minutes, and Vegeta's patience was wearing thin. With nothing else to do, he found himself watching the television. He cursed under his breath upset that he was doing something so human-ish, sitting down, doing nothing, and watching TV waiting for his food.

Apparently it was some soap opera as the woman had explained a while back. He couldn't figure out why people would watch something like that. To him it was a waste of time to watch people's fictional emotional lives on a screen.

The sound of a baby crying on the TV and the sound of the brat crying was driving him insane. He got up looking for a device called a remote control to turn off the television. Getting angry because he couldn't find it, he walked over to the TV with full intention to blast it to pieces. Just as he was about to get his energy blast ready, the soap opera that was playing before stopped. With curiosity, he decided to let the TV stall its fate wondering why the pointless show stopped.

The news anchor came on and Vegeta read "Breaking News" at the bottom of the screen. With the blast firmly in his hand, he continued to watch wondering what he was going to say.

"We are sorry to interrupt your daily scheduled program, but we are getting sketchy information of large explosions in East city. We now go live to one of our action news reporters."

Vegeta decided he would forego destroying the television for right now. _Explosions? Must be some pathetic human technology gone wrong._

"Yes! People are screaming and running away from the tallest structure in the city. A large explosion occurred in the center of the building right in the middle of the financial district on a busy day which made the top part collapse. We are not sure what caused the explosion but-" the reporter was cut off by another very loud explosion.

The camera man pointed in the direction of the explosion. A large smoke cloud could be seen with flames underneath. People were running away from the explosion. When the camera man zoomed in, one could see people on fire. It was a horrific site. Now curious, Vegeta's eyes were glued to the TV. That explosion seemed like it was created by a ki blast. Immediately, Vegeta tried to sense what was happening. With no luck, he closed his eyes and tried to sense to see if anybody was attacking with a high ki signature.

After minute or two of searching, Vegeta couldn't find anybody with a high power level. _Must be explosives_Vegeta concluded. With his eyes still closed, another loud explosion could be heard on the screen. He immediately opened his eyes. He watched the TV as the camera man turned the camera towards this new explosion. He could have sworn he could feel the earth shake under his feet. Vegeta was very surprised. _Humans have the technology to make that big of an explosion? _Vegeta was certain that the technology wasn't here on earth except perhaps at Capsule Corporation where the woman was head of. Not completely convinced that it was explosives, Vegeta tried to sense once more time to see if he could feel a high power level. He closed his eyes.

After a minute, he still felt nothing. He opened his eyes somewhat upset that he couldn't figure out what was happening. Then it hit him all of a sudden. He felt the brat of Kakarot close to the explosions. His power level was high and he knew he was investigating what was happening. Debating whether he should go out to see and perhaps _help _the boy or let him handle it himself, he walked into the other room still somewhat angry that he didn't get his food yet. He followed the annoying sound of the baby crying. Why hadn't the woman shut the brat up yet?

He walked into the living room and saw his Bulma staring at the television ignoring the baby's cries. She had the look of complete surprise on her face. She almost looked upset and sad also. Vegeta realized that this situation must be quite serious for earth as she has never seen the woman so surprised in her life. Vegeta stood there wondering if he should care enough to investigate what was happening or start ordering the woman to make his food. Then another loud explosion happened. This time the camera was facing the explosion therefore the world saw the explosion live on TV. Vegeta swore he saw a blast fired from something in the sky. He didn't doubt the fact that he could have mistaken it for a missile considering the human's inferior screen and camera technology. He felt the earth shake underneath his feet once again. Then almost immediately, he felt Kakarot's boy power level skyrocket. He could tell the boy was flying very fast towards the explosion.

Still upset that he didn't feel any spike of power level when the blast hit, he then decided that perhaps he should investigate. Cursing under his breath because he decided to care enough to figure out what was happening, he walked over to the woman. As he was walking the few short steps, he could feel the Namek's power level going towards the brat. Any doubt that he had to investigate was now gone.

"Woman!" Vegeta said in his gruff voice. In a daze herself, Bulma broke it and looked at Vegeta.

"Vegeta?" Bulma said in a worried voice.

"Something is not right. I am going to figure out what is happening. Kakarot's brat is there alone and the Namek is approaching." Vegeta said now wondering why he said that last part. He didn't want to make it sound like he was worried, but it was already too late. Bulma was still in her daze and Vegeta decided to go without her saying anything. Angry that he sounded like he cared about his enemy's son, he decided that he should say no more.

"Wait!" Bulma said. Vegeta stopped but didn't turn around. "Please come back alive!"

Somewhat irritated that the woman might be worried that he would get hurt by some pathetic human technology, he shook the thought away knowing that it was just the woman caring.

"I will be fine" was all Vegeta said as he began to walk towards the door.

Something didn't feel right to Bulma. Something was just off, and she didn't know what it was exactly. She watched Vegeta walk towards the door and almost felt the need to put out her hand out of instinct. Not sure why she would have to do this knowing full well that Vegeta was by far the most powerful person on earth now, she could still feel that something was not right.

"I- I love you Vegeta" Bulma felt the need to say before he left. Vegeta didn't turn around but smiled slightly glad nobody saw him. Vegeta put up his hand and waved slightly and exited the building. Bulma went to the window and saw Vegeta fly off. That was the last she had saw of him.

Now Gohan was crying not sure what to do and in a state of shock at what had happen and Bulma was also crying realizing that she would never see Vegeta again because Piccolo had died. The dragonballs were out of the question. She considered Namek's dragonballs but unfortunately she would have to build a completely new space ship capable of travelling such a long distance which would require an enormous feat. The last time they went to Namek, they used the engine of Goku's space pod when he came to earth and unfortunately, thanks to the saiyan prince, the spaceship no longer existed.

She was in tears hugging her best friend's son who was also crying. What was she suppose to do? She knew she would have to remain strong else the emotions would overrun her and take its toll. She had to stay strong for not only herself but for Gohan also. This was a new time for them, a time of darkness. An entire city wiped clean off the face of the earth and all its population with it. Surely whatever attacked would likely attack again, and she realized that this could be bad for the entire earth. Being the strong woman she is, she decided she had to say something.

"Gohan." Bulma said. Gohan sniffled and looked up to Bulma. "We are going to have to remain strong. That is what your dad would do. He always looked up to the future with a positive attitude. No matter what was happening, he was able to keep the mood positive. We have to do the same. He always succeeded when he kept positive."

"Except when he died" Gohan added and looked down at the ground.

"He had no control over that! Every other time, even if he had almost no control of the situation, he still had a little and that was enough for him. We have a little control here also. We just have to think and keep positive. Yes all of our friends died today, but we are going to have to keep a positive mood. That is what your father did and it still amazes me even now." Bulma said and gave a smile. A tear escaped her eyes. This time it wasn't because of sadness, but happiness.

"Yeah, you are right Bulma." Gohan added. He knew he had to stay positive like his father. He was going to have to do it for Trunks.

A/N- Hey guys… Thanks for reading again. If you have gotten here, I must have you somewhat hooked to this fanfic. I hope you enjoy it and I am not sure exactly where I am going to go or how far I will go. Thanks for the reviews, and I always respond to every review here at the end of the chapter so if you review, my response will be at the end of the next chapter. Always, no questions. Thanks guys!

Arcane- Yes, this is the lowest I have ever gone in a story. People have told me I go waaaay to fast, and I believe them. Writing is not my forte, but I have always been interested in somehow conveying my ideas. It will pick up slightly as there will be less flashbacks… I think. Thank you for the review!

Sakura- Thanks! I hope you enjoy this chapter. There is a lot that Gohan has to do… And at his age. Hope you enjoy this chapter.

TeamAlecVolturi- Thanks for the encouragement. Hope you enjoy this chapter!


	3. One Year Ago

A/N- This chapter is 5421 words. Review response and a note at bottom. Enjoy!

Gohan lay in bed still trying to come to terms at what had happened earlier that day. Scratching his eyes from the irritation of dried tears from earlier, he got on his feet and looked out the window at the serene view from his window. It was calm in West City because of what had happened earlier. Most people had taken the day off from work to get back to their loved ones in case anything else dangerous happened. So far, there were no other attacks yet but it had only been a few hours since the lsdy catastrophe. An entire city reduced to rubble with death toll estimates were over a million as almost everybody in the bustling city was killed. The monsters left little time to escape.

Gohan stared out the window as if it were a window to the past. He once remembered going to a party on the Capsule Corporation lawn with all of his friends and family. Everybody was having fun, laughing over good times, and enjoying the there and now. It was after Freeza was finally defeated and there was peace. Gohan looked out the window as a tear began to form. Rubbing his eyes, he knew he had to keep a clear mind and not dwell so much on the past to lift his heavy heart away. There was something in his chest, a heavy feeling, a feeling of sadness that he couldn't shake off which made him think of all the fun times he had with his family and friends and how he will never get to see them again. Trying very hard to shake off these feelings, he walked out of his new room at Capsule Corporation and walked down stairs.

At the bottom of the stairs he could hear the television on in the other room. Curious, Gohan went to see what was on. Every channel was talking about what had happened earlier. He stopped in front of the television and watched. They had the picture of the battlefield, the once busy city now reduced to rubble. He decided to listen in.

"As you can see, East City is no more. This is not a joke ladies and gentlemen. Even the outskirts of the city are no more. The suburbs of the city are heavily damaged and some of them are completely destroyed."

The camera showed a 360 view of the barren waste land. All one could see was a flat endless view of destroyed buildings all the way to the side of the mountains off to the west.

"We have no idea what has happened here but there are sketchy reports that a huge fight occurred here. One report told us that those same explosions that happened today happened four years ago when two objects from space came down in a bustling city near Papaya Island which leveled the city. The city has since been rebuilt yet there is still no explanation to what happened."

Gohan listened realizing that they were talking about when Vegeta and Nappa came to Earth. Apparently, Nappa had destroyed the city they landed in, Gohan watched as they replayed the explosions that had happened prior to the battle that took place in which all of his friends and family were killed in.

"How are you doing kiddo?"

Gohan turned around to see Bulma with a meek smile on her face. She was trying really hard to keep things positive even after what had happened.

"I don't know." Gohan questioned. He wanted his father and Piccolo to be here to tell him what to do. All of his nine years, he had people beside him to help guide him. "I don't know what to do. I wish dad were here."

Bulma sighed and got closer to Gohan. "I wish he were here also. What an awful past year. Everything and anything that could go wrong did."

"What do you think dad would do?" Gohan asked.

"Even to this day, I still don't know how he managed to pull off what he did. Even in hopeless situations, he would figure out a way to make everything okay. If he were still here, I know he would train so hard right now!" Bulma explained with a smile.

Gohan sat down on the couch. Bulma did as well. They needed to remain together and keep what was left alive. Gohan still thought back to what Vegeta had said. He wondered if now was the time to tell Bulma what he said. Gohan thought that if he told her now, Bulma would do everything in her power to not let Trunks train. Gohan knew this and decided that now was not the time.

"Why did dad die?" Gohan asked out of the blue.

Bulma looked down at the boy. Why did he _die_? Don't good things happen to good people or do the good die young? She most certainly wanted to believe that good things happen to good people, and Goku was the kindest hearted truthful person she knew. He would only do what was right no matter what happened. Why did he have to die?

"Bad things happen to good people. There is no reason he died so soon." Bulma said. The notion that good things happen to good people no longer was true. Goku was the definition of good.

Gohan thought back to his days with his father. Things were so wonderful as if nothing bad could ever happen. It just didn't seem possible that within a year's time, everything bad that could happen did. He thought back to those last moments with his father. Those moments that he will always _remember_.

Gohan, age 8, nearly one year ago from today, walked inside his house with a big fish he had just caught. Normally he would go with his father to catch a big fish, but his father wasn't feeling too well at the moment which was a surprise to Chi Chi and Gohan. Since when did Goku not feel well? Since when did he fell sick? He walked inside to the kitchen and put the big fish on the counter.

"There!" Gohan said with pride. He had caught a bigger fish than normal. Chi Chi smiled yet slightly annoyed that she was going to have to gut such a huge fish.

"Is dad still not feeling well?" Gohan asked without a worry.

"I don't know. Why don't you check on him?" Chi Chi said as she got to work with the fish.

"Okay!" Gohan said as he went into the other room to go upstairs. Once he reached his dad's and mom's room, he walked in and saw his father lying in bed. He walked over to see how his father was doing. At a closer look, Gohan could tell that he wasn't feeling any better but was he feeling worse? He saw that his father was putting pressure on his chest even though he appeared to be asleep. He could tell that his father was in pain because of his facial expression. Last time he checked on his father, he didn't see this, so he thought he was doing worse. After a few moments of watching his father, he could hear him moan.

Gohan's ears perked up as he heard his father moan in pain as he clutched his chest tighter. He began to move his whole body a little bit. Gohan began to feel nervous not wondering what was causing this. With another louder moan, Gohan thought he should get his mother up here. He ran out the door downstairs.

"Mom! Dad is getting worse!" Gohan said in a frantic voice.

Chi Chi put down her tools to gut the fish and ran back upstairs behind her son. Once they reached the room they could hear Goku moaning in pain. Chi Chi saw that her husband was sweating and immediately went to the bathroom to grab a washcloth. She turned on the cold water faucet and began to soak the washcloth. Quickly she squeezed the excess water and ran back into the room. She went to the bedside and laid the cool damp washcloth over her husband's forehead.

"It's ok Goku, everything will be okay." Chi Chi said trying to calm herself, her husband, and her son down.

"Wha- What's wrong with daddy?" Gohan asked in a worried voice as he began to sob a little.

"I'm, I'm not sure, but I am going to find out" Chi Chi stuttered a little as she went over to the night stand. She picked up the phone and dialed in a number. After a few moments somebody picked up.

"Hello?" the voice said.

"Oh hi Mrs. Briefs, do you know if Bulma is around?" Chi Chi asked in worry free voice.

"Oh, shes working on one of her gadgets again." Mrs. Briefs said in a very perky voice.

"Can you get her? It's quite important." Chi Chi said with a more worried voice.

"Of course dear, one minute." Mrs. Briefs said.

After a few minutes of waiting, Chi Chi was tapping her foot slightly impatient. She could tell that the pain had subsided a little as Goku was relaxing again however he was still clutching his chest. Finally after a few more minutes, Bulma finally picked up.

"Hello?" Bulma said with a little surprise. Chi Chi never called saying something was important.

"Bulma?" Chi Chi asked.

"Yeah, is something wrong Chi?" Bulma asked over the phone.

"Goku is feeling really sick and we are not sure why."

Bulma gasped. She was really surprised. Vegeta had made it clear that saiyans were superior to humans in every single way and one of those ways was that saiyans never got sick. When she thought about it for a second, she had never seen Goku or Vegeta sick before in her life.

"Bulma?" Chi Chi asked.

"Yeah, sorry. Vegeta always makes it clear to me that saiyans never get sick. Are you sure he is sick? What symptoms is he showing?" Bulma said over the phone.

"He is moaning in pain and grabbing his chest like it hurts or something. Just a minute ago he was tossing and turning in bed and sweating. I put a wash cloth over his head to cool him down." Chi Chi said.

Bulma frowned for a second as she thought. She swore she has heard about these symptoms before but she couldn't remember.

"Woman!" Chi Chi could hear over the phone. It was Vegeta. Just great.

"Vegeta, I don't have time for you right now!" Bulma yelled. The fury of her voice could easily be heard over the phone. Chi Chi to this day could still not understand why her friend was putting up with him.

"Well then make time! One of the bots you made has malfunctioned!" Vegeta said angrily.

Bulma ignored him as she went back to thinking. She opened up a medical magazine lying around wondering if she read something about this recently. Being a great scientist, she also had vast knowledge on the human, and to some degree _saiyan_, anatomy. She flipped through the pages and then stopped. She saw what she was looking for. The title of the article was _An Unknown Heart Virus_.

She looked at the side of the page where it listed the symptoms. She dropped the magazine on the floor in disbelief. She had a very blank look on her face. _Could it be? Does he really have that virus?_ Not wanting to start any commotion, she thought it would be best if she went to see Goku.

"Woman! Did you hear me?"

Ignoring him once again, she picked up the phone again.

"Chi Chi?" Bulma asked.

"Yes Bulma?"

"I am not sure what is wrong, but I will come over immediately" Bulma said in a worried voice.

"Okay, thanks Bulma"

Bulma hung up the phone and sighed. _Those symptoms are exactly what the article said. _Bulma feared the worst and decided she would need to educate herself more about this virus Goku possibly had. She ran down the hall of the living wing of Capsule Corporation toward the science wing. She walked by some of the scientists who were surprised to see her as she was usually busy working in her own office and lab. She walked down another hall and then turned left. Finally after 5 minutes, she made it. Out of breath, she walked inside a large room which was labeled _Library._

She went down a long isle of books and finally saw what she was looking for. There were some medical books about the anatomy of human beings but she was looking for a book that just arrived a few days ago. _There_. She grabbed the book and ran back to where she came from.

Once back in the living wing, she grabbed a sweatshirt and ran outdoors. She saw the spaceship that contained the gravity room that Vegeta used daily. What she didn't notice was Vegeta standing in front of her speed plane till she got to it.

"Vegeta! I don't have time for you!" Bulma said with venom realizing he was in the way.

Strangely enough Vegeta got out of her way. Even Vegeta could tell something was not right. He had never seen her so frantically trying to do something. She jumped into her plane and took off as fast as she could. Vegeta stood there in the dust annoyed that he got all dirty, but wondering what was going on. He killed that meaningless curiosity of his and walked back towards the gravity room.

Once at a high enough altitude, Bulma set the plane on autopilot straight to Goku's house which was far out of the way. Normally, it would take nearly two hours even with Capsule Corporation's fastest jets however Bulma had her own jet that she put a lot of time and energy creating which could get there in 30 minutes. She took her eyes off of the mountains in the horizon and opened up the book. She immediately went to the area which talked about this new virus that she heard of.

Over the next 30 minutes, she was reading up on this unknown virus. Apperently it had just come out of nowhere which meant there was little knowledge about it. She wasn't sure if this was what Goku had, but she didn't want to take any chances. She finally got to the end of the article. _There is no cure for this new virus. To date, anybody that has got in contact with the virus has NOT survived. From what little we know now, it cannot be transmitted from human to human but that can change with time as the virus duplicates and becomes smarter._

She closed the book as she was _nearing_ Goku's house. The plane automatically began to descend into the valley. She put the book on the passenger side of the jet using the last few moments to think. _What if he does have that virus? Does that mean he is going to die? He is a saiyan after all, so perhaps he might survive. _She stopped her thoughts for a second. _Hold on Bulma, you don't even know if he has this particular virus. Don't jump to conclusions. _Bulma thought but she couldn't shake that feeling inside of her that this was really bad.

She landed right outside Goku's house. She didn't even knock and ran right inside upstairs. She knew Goku's family very well and was welcome anytime. Chi Chi was fanning Goku while Gohan watched his father fight whatever was happening to him.

"Thank Kami you are here Bulma!" Chi Chi cried as she hugged her long time friend.

"Yeah. Let me see what is up with Goku!" Bulma said as he walked over to her best friend. She sat on the bed and felt his pure heart. His heart rate was erratic which is another symptom of this unknown virus. All other cases of this virus had a very specific heart rate the article and book said which she was searching for. The other cases had hearts which would beat very fast for 10 seconds, and then it wouldn't beat at all or a very low rate for another 10 seconds. She felt Goku's heart and it was doing exactly this. She was losing hope that this could be something else. _How could this happen to Goku?_

She stepped back out of fear. _How can Goku succumb to a virus? _She could tell Chi Chi wanted answers. She was looking straight at her.

"Gohan dear, can you let me talk to your mother alone?" Bulma said in the sweetest voice she could muster.

Gohan looked at her a bit peeved. "But I want to know what is wrong with daddy too." Gohan said sadly.

Much to Bulma's surprise, Chi Chi didn't say anything. She assumed that she wanted Gohan to know what was wrong also. She sighed not sure if the kid was capable of taking such news. She thought for a second then realized Gohan should know. _Who am I kidding, that kid has been through more than any human has._

"I did some research about what Goku has while on the way over. I wasn't certain, but now I am pretty sure I know what he has. This is really hard for me to say." Bulma said as a tear began to form in her eyes. Gohan and Chi Chi looked on really worried about what Bulma had to say.

"He-" Bulma began but was having a really hard time saying this. "He has a radical new heart virus which attacks the heart basically suffocating it from the inside. If I am right about this, he-" She stopped. The tear forming in her eyes were now flowing down her cheeks. She decided to go on. "He will die." She clasped her hands on her mouth.

Realizing she needed to stay strong minded, she went over to hug Chi Chi and Gohan. Both Chi Chi and Gohan were begin to have tears in their eyes. All three of them embraced each other trying to comfort each other. Gohan was now sobbing almost in disbelief at what is happening. Chi Chi also began to cry. How could the strongest person in the world, and possibly the universe, die from a virus?

The three of them shared the hug for nearly five minutes not wanting to give up their comfort. Finally after breaking the hug, Bulma had to ask a question.

"When did he come down with symptoms? When did he get sick?" Bulma asked while sniffling.

Chi Chi closed her eyes wondering if this morning was the last time she would be able to speak to her husband. "This morning." ChI Chi said then paused. "He began to feel sick right before lunch."

"I-" Bulma began to talk but she couldn't form her words easily. This was just too painful to witness and not be able to do anything to help her friend. "There are very few cases, but in every case the subject has died within six to twelve hours of symptoms."

Chi Chi choked and looked up to her friend. "What? You are saying he's going to die today!" she said a bit loudly scaring her sobbing son.

"I think." Bulma whispered quietly.

"How? How could this happen to Goku. How can a virus take him out?" Chi Chi asked looking towards the ceiling not directed to anybody in particular.

"I- I just don't know. We have to stay strong and hope for the best. That is what Goku would do. He always has a way of getting out of tough situations and this is no different." Bulma said trying to comfort them and her when she really knew that Goku probably wouldn't make it.

Chi Chi realized that she needed to remain strong for herself and Gohan. "Let's hope for the best. You are right Bulma."

Gohan's worry was still there, but he knew that they were right. He had to hope for the best. That is what his father would do. He looked back towards his father watching his chest go up and down in his breaths. He didn't look to be in as much pain as before. He was still gripping his chest.

"Do- do you think we should call the others?" Bulma asked.

Chi Chi paused for a moment and thought. _What would Goku want in this situation? _She thought for a moment. "Yes. I believe Goku would want his friends near him."

Bulma nodded. "I don't think I have everybody's phone number. In fact, I don't think a lot of them have phones."

"Well we have Master Roshi's number. Maybe Krillin is there." Chi Chi said as she walked over to the phone.

After an hour had gone by, several of Goku's old friends had shown up. Master Roshi, Goku's first master had shown up because of the news. Along with him, Krillin, Goku's old time sparring partner and good childhood friend. Oolong and Yamcha also showed up. Gohan went out to find Piccolo and much to everyone's surprise, he showed up to see his old rival. Everybody was in utter disbelief that Goku could die from a virus.

Krillin, Yamcha, Oolong, Gohan, and his mother all stood at Goku's bedside getting anxious every time he began to moan in pain. Piccolo was sitting in the corner of the room not willing to show the care and love Goku's friends would. Hour after hour, Goku's friends stayed at his bedside. By now it was nearly 9:00 PM and Goku's condition had worsened. He was in constant pain moaning and tossing and turning in bed. Chi Chi, Gohan, and his friends tried to calm him down, but nothing was working.

Finally after Chi Chi hugged her husband once again, he calmed down a little bit. Now he was breathing a bit more calmly now. Everybody gave a sigh of relief.

All of a sudden after a quiet ten minutes, Piccolo got up and everybody looked over to him. Piccolo walked towards the door. "Piccolo, where are you going?" Gohan asked. He didn't want his master to leave. He needed him to help comfort him. Not everybody was fond of Piccolo, but Gohan sure was.

"I sense Vegeta coming." Piccolo said.

Everybody's eyes widened. Bulma stepped forward. "What? Why is he coming?"

"I don't know." Piccolo said as he walked out of the room. Everybody assumed he was going to talk to him.

Vegeta had enough. The woman had not only ignored his order to fix the broken bots, but she had not come home to cook dinner for him. Not only that, but he had to fly all the way out in the middle of nowhere. Vegeta didn't have a clue of why everybody was out here, but he could feel the Namek, the woman, Kakarot's brat, and some of Kakorot's other friends. He couldn't feel Kakorot at all till he got very close. He assumed he must have lived out here.

He saw a light in the distance. It was dark moonlit sky which helped him guide his way during the night. He landed outside the house but he felt something. He turned to his right and saw the Namek standing there.

"What are you doing here Namek?" Vegeta demanded to know. Piccolo walked over to the saiyan prince. Vegeta wasn't sure what was going on but he could feel that something was not right.

"Gohan wanted me to come." Piccolo said.

"That doesn't answer my question Namek!" Vegeta said forming a fist. He hated when people tested his patience.

"Goku is dying" Piccolo bluntly said.

"What!" Vegeta yelled wondering if this was some joke.

"He has come down with a heart virus and will probably not make it through the night." Piccolo said.

"That's absurd!" Vegeta yelled totally surprised. "Saiyans don't get sick, even a low third class saiyan like Kakarot!" Vegeta said.

"You can see him if you want. Bulma, Gohan, Chi Chi, and some of Goku's friends are watching him at his bedside" Piccolo said.

Vegeta narrowed his eyes at the Namek and decided he needed to see this for himself. He opened the door nearly tearing it off its hinges. Not caring around where Kakarot lived, he walked upstairs and sensed out his rival. He came to the bedroom door which was closed and stopped for a second. _Why am I here again? I came here to bring the woman back home not to see a disgrace of a saiyan who is sick. How pathetic. _He opened the door and everybody looked in his direction. Vegeta walked in ignoring the glares.

"What! You aren't welcome here!" Chi Chi screeched.

Ignoring the woman's screechy voice, he walked over to see Goku. Everybody moved out of the way to let him see his rival however they were on guard. They weren't sure what Vegeta's intentions were. Did he come to strike down his enemy while he was defenseless? That was on everybody's minds. Bulma stared at the saiyan prince surprised to see him. _What could he be doing here? Why would he come here to see Goku? _

Vegeta eyed the only other full blooded saiyan in the universe. He could feel his unstable power level as he gripped his chest in pain. _How pathetic. I have never known a saiyan to get sick before. This must be because he is a third class warrior. I don't recall a saiyan ever getting sick before._ He narrowed his eyes at Kakarot. _He better not die. He can only die at my hands alone! _He turned around and walked towards the door.

"Woman, I demand that you quit this display of emotions and fix my bots and cook me food!" Vegeta didn't say too loudly yet in his typical voice of anger. Bulma had the look of disgust on her face.

"What! How dare you insolent-"

"Vegeta."

Everybody turned back towards where the voice came from. It was Goku who said that. Even Vegeta turned around to see what the other saiyan wanted. Everybody was speechless. Goku had been out for hours and now he said something. His eyes were still closed but Vegeta looked at the saiyan with curiosity.

"What do you want Kakarot?" Vegeta said with his arms crossed. He didn't really care that the saiyan was in this state, a state of nearing death. Everybody waited to see if Goku would respond. After a minute, he did not respond and that was enough for Vegeta to leave. He began to turn away to go to the door.

"You are the father, right?" the voice said slowly and softly as he gripped his chest harder because of the pain.

Vegeta didn't say anything. He didn't know what to say. _How did that no good third class idiot know?_ Bulma was thinking the same thing yet not as rudely. _How did he find out?_ Everybody continued to look at Vegeta waiting for an answer. He didn't like this attention.

"What is he talking about?" Krillin asked too surprised at what Goku was saying. Father? What father? Vegeta was actually going to be a father? A father to whom? None of this made sense.

Vegeta ignored him and walked out of the room. He didn't have any reason to be there. He left and everybody could hear that he left as the front door shut. Everybody was just too surprised wondering what Goku was talking about.

"Bulma, please tell me, is he?" Goku asked very slowly with his eyes closed. Everybody then stared at Bulma.

Bulma thought for a second. She had been wondering how to tell everybody that she was going to have a child, Vegeta's child. _Well I guess it's now. I don't really have a choice. Goku deserves to know. I was going to ask him anyways what I should do about it. _

"Yes." She whispered.

She stared at Goku wondering what his reaction would be or if he would even have a reaction. A smile began to creep on his face. A smiling Goku at impending death. How could he be smiling at a time like this? Did he not know what was about to happen to him?

"You will make a wonderful mother." Goku said with his eyes shut. "I can feel him inside of you. He is going to be very strong warrior some day."

Everybody was stunned. Was it true? Was Bulma really about to mother a child of Vegeta's?

"Wait, you are telling me Vegeta is the dad?" Krillin said with his eyes wide open. Everybody stared back at Bulma waiting for an answer.

"Yes" She said while nodding.

Yamcha grunted. Everybody else was just too surprised. For now, everybody put aside their surprise and focused at the problem on hand. Everybody stared back towards Goku, a smiling Goku. Who would have thought that Goku would be smiling at his death? Goku couldn't have been happier. Here he was about to die with his friends at his side and he now knows his long time rival who has affected his life, once his enemy, and considered by many, still their enemy was going to have a son with his friend.

Goku now knew that Vegeta couldn't have been just a cold hearted killer and must possess some feelings even though he would never show them. He had means of getting of this planet, yet he was still here and had impregnated a woman, Goku's best friend. He continued to smile as he slowly drifted to death.

"Son come here" Goku whispered.

Gohan heard this and walked got down to his father's level.

"Yes dad?"

"Make me proud" Goku said after a few minutes. Another few minutes went by and Goku managed to say one last thing.

"Thanks."

That was his last word he said. Gohan remembered it, every second of it. Those last few words of his father played in his mind over and over again. He sat on the couch of Capusle Corporation along with Bulma as they remembered those last moments with Gohan's father. Even to this day, Bulma was really happy that Goku found out about Trunks. She would have never forgiven herself if she didn't let Goku know about her son.

Bulma got up and decided it was time to make something to eat. "Are you hungry Gohan?" she asked.

"Yeah."

"Okay, I will be in the kitchen." Bulma said and walked towards the kitchen.

Gohan got up on his feet and walked over to Trunks. He was crawling on the ground in an area in the family room which was designated as his spot. He bent down to reach the baby's level. Trunks stopped and looked up to the older boy. Gohan let out his finger to see if Trunks would do anything. Trunks in fact did do something. He grabbed Gohan's finger and pulled it closer. Gohan could feel the tug on his finger, much stronger than any baby he's ever felt. _He is going to be strong._ Gohan thought as he was playing a little tug of war with the baby. Unbeknownst to Gohan, Bulma was standing there watching them. _They will become close one day._ _I don't know if that's a good thing. Do I want him to get strong like Goku said? hmm_.

A/N- Hey… Thanks for reading this chapter. This chappie is a bit longer than the others, but it had to be this way in order for the long flashback. There will be far less flashbacks and the story will begin to develop. I have not seen too many stories, if any, that tell the story of Goku's heart virus death. I hope you enjoyed it but now the story will focus more on Gohan and Trunks.

-review response-

TeamAlecVolturi- Oh man… I am not even close to being a "natural." I really didn't enjoy writing in school, but I have grown to like it a bit more over time. I am getting better each time I write something (although I enjoyed my writing more on the last two chapters.) I am looking forward to writing this fanfic, even though it doesn't seem that popular. One of my favorite subjects, the Mirai (future) timeline of an uncertain future living in fear. I hope you enjoyed this chappie. Thank you so much for writing a review!


	4. Hope

A/N- And here the final chappie. This chappie is about 3200 words. Enjoy!

Gohan pulled himself back up from the ground. He had played with Trunks for the last few minutes. He hadn't really spent any time with the toddler but he knew he was going to be spending the majority of his time in the future with the child. _Vegeta gave me this task. This is the one thing he has ever asked of me. I will fulfill his wishes. _

He got on his feet and rubbed his eyes. The dried tears were getting itchy. He saw Bulma standing in the doorway watching the scene of Gohan and Trunks. This really was it. It was Bulma, Trunks, and himself that were left from all of his father's friends. They all had one thing in common. The doctrine to protect the universe from evil was one of the main reasons they were bound. They had travelled across the galaxy to stop an evil tyrant from becoming ruler of the Universe. Now something even worse is on their home soil. It is much different from all the other times they were at battle here on home soil.

The great power of the Androids could hardly be contained by something as small as this planet. Yet here they were and there was little to stop them. Gohan thought about all the enemies that his father fought. They were all after him because of the good that he had done. It was time for Gohan to fulfill the same duty as his father. He just didn't know where to start but Vegeta gave him a helping hand. He turned back and looked at Trunks. He was playing with his toys on the ground too young to comprehend what is happening.

_This is a new time. A time of destruction and death and there is nothing to stand in their way except me. _Gohan thought as he looked at the young bundle of joy, Trunks. He turned his head back to Bulma as she was standing in the doorway watching her son. She was probably thinking back on the memories with Vegeta. _Should I tell her now? Should I tell her what Vegeta said? Maybe I will give her a little more time. _

He decided that it was best to try and get some sleep. It had been a long day. This clearly was the worst day in his life and he needed to put it to rest. The androids attacked and killed everyone including Piccolo so the dragonballs were out of the question. There was no way to get off this planet with current technology. Scientists and everyone else is too scared to leave their homes in fear that they would die by these unknown beasts. _Ok. I need to sleep in preparation for training tomorrow. _

With that though he walked passed Bulma up to his room without saying a word. He was too sad to even talk and Bulma knew that he needed some time. Time heals all wounds right? Well this was one wound that would never be healed. Bulma watched him walk upstairs to his now designated room. _What an awful day. _She thought as she walked over to her son to put him to bed also.

The next morning came as if any other morning would. The birds were chirping and the sun was out however one thing was not the same. There was nobody on the streets and nobody came to work today including at Capsule Corp. Over a million people had died yesterday so the initial fear factor prevented most to get out today. Gohan put on clothes and walked downstairs to see Bulma standing in the same place as yesterday watching her son play. _This is probably her way of dealing with the pain and losses. What is my way to deal with this?_

"I am going to train" Gohan said looking up to Bulma in a monotone voice. His voice irked of sadness. It was very apparent to Bulma.

"Be careful. I can't lose you too." Bulma said worryingly. Gohan and Trunks was all she had left.

"I won't go blindly after the androids even though they make so angry." Gohan said.

Bulma looked somewhat pleased. "You sound like your father. Train hard."

Gohan nodded his head and begun to walk out of the room. He stopped at the door.

"When I get back, I have something to tell you." Gohan said while walking out the door.

Bulma looked slightly confused. What couldn't be said right here and now? She shook it out of her mind. She looked back at Trunks. It was incredible that someone as small as Trunks could mean so much to her. It was the only thing that Vegeta had left for her. There were no pictures of her and Vegeta, no fond memories of him spending time with her and Trunks, and no memorable romantic moments between them. He left her with nothing but their son who was half Saiyan and half earthling. The one picture that she did take of Vegeta was of him with his upset scowl on his face.

She continues to question even to this day if there was any love between them. She knew she loved him but did he love her back? Was it reciprocated love or unrequited love? Even now she still remembers when she was just a teenager when she was in search from the dragonballs and the perfect man. _Look how that turned out. I never found the man that would live with me the rest of my life and we would have a nice family. _She continued to think about those memories. _So much for Yamcha._

_But I did meet my prince. _She smiled at the thought of that. Even though it did happen, nothing seemed like it should have been. She met her prince but the lack of love and family life left a lot to be desired. She walked over to a small table next to the couch. There lay the only picture of Vegeta. His arms were crossed with the typical scowl on his face. A tear made its way down her face as she wished and tried to get Vegeta to say that he loved her. Those days had gone with the rest of her friends.

Out in the wilderness, Gohan pierced through the sky towards one destination. He headed towards his former home deep within the wilderness of Mt. Paozu. After a few minutes of flying through the mountains he saw his old house standing untouched from the androids destruction. He landed down near the tree he and his father would sometimes sit and talk at. He saw the table they used to eat at outside when the weather permitted. Those memories flooded his mind as if it were yesterday.

He walked into his house as if it was any normal day and looked over at the small dining room where they would used to spend a lot of their time. After all, two of the family members had Saiyan appetites! He walked down the hall into his room. Everything was as if he was walking into it a few years ago when everything was perfect. Freeza had been defeated and life had returned to normal.

This felt like a safe haven for him. There was no way the androids would ever come here. Most of his childhood memories were here. _Childhood memories. Pfft, I am still just a boy and now I have to be the one to save the world!_ He spent a little bit of time sifting through pictures that her mother insisted taking. Now he knew why she always had the camera ready. _It is for remembering._ He looked through some of the pictures but one stood out. It was a picture of his mom, dad, and him when he was younger in a small town stocking up on supplies. He took that picture out of its sleeve and stuck it in his pocket. He needed something to look at when he was feeling abnormally sad as if that word means much right now.

He left the house spotless and walked out. He walked a little ways down memory lane. It's amazing how many memories he had even though he was still very young. He followed the stream by the house to an open meadow. This was where he and his father would sometimes train at. _Well I better begin, but where do I start? _ He was unsure as he always had a mentor telling him what to do. This was the first time he was on his own. After a few minutes thought he decided to meditate like his master would do.

He got into position and calmed his mind down to the point of meditation. Meditation strengthened the mind and soul while strengthening his ki. This would in turn mean stronger ki attacks. He knew this was a necessity to someday stop the androids. _I have to train myself so I could train Trunks. _

After several hours of meditation he decided that it was time to go back to Capsule Corp. He stood up and dusted himself off. He looked around savoring the memories of the valley in which he used to reside in. The snow capped mountains, the stream flowing nearby, the birds chirping, the blue sky, and his small dwelling in the valley was where he grew up. The city was much different but he knew he had to be there for Bulma and Trunks. _How will I tell Bulma what Vegeta said to him? _

He didn't give it a second thought as his mother always told him to be upfront and truthful with everything. He flew back towards West City in the orange dusky sky. After a short fifteen minute flight, he made it to Capsule Corp. _Good everything was as he was left it. _He wondered if the androids had attacked another city today.

Touching down on the lawn of Capsule Corp, he walked over to the front door looking into the window. Trunks was playing where he was this morning. _What a happy kid. I wish I was this happy._ He walked into his new home and looked over at Trunks.

"Gohan!" the little toddler said running slowly to the older boy. _He remembers my name. Wow._

"Hey there Trunks!" Gohan said happy and kneeled down to greet the little tike.

"Mama" Trunks said and pointed behind Gohan. He turned his head and saw Bulma standing there with a smile.

"He kept saying your name over and over today." Bulma said with a smile. Gohan was surprised. _Why would he say that? I wonder what he wants. _

"So did anything happen today with the androids?" Gohan said in a different voice.

Bulma turned away and shut her eyes. "The news reported that they wiped out another city." She opened her eyes and looked back at Gohan. "At this rate they will kill everyone on this planet in no time!"

Gohan felt another tear forming in his eyes. _All those people._ He squeezed his eyes tighter in sadness and anger. _There must be a way to stop those beasts! _

"There will come a day when they will be no more. You need to stay optimistic. One of these days Gohan." Bulma said in a calm voice.

"I hope I will be there to watch those ruthless androids fall!" Gohan yelled.

"You will be the one to do it. I believe in you Gohan. You don't know how much you mean to me." Bulma said.

"I know." Gohan said and gave her a hug. They stayed like this for a little bit when something was tugging at his leg. Gohan looked down and saw Trunks mimicking the hug. _That's sweet. _Gohan thought as he looked back at Bulma.

"He really likes you." Bulma said with a smile letting go of the hug.

"Bulma, I have something to tell you about Vegeta." Gohan said in a somewhat serious tone.

At the sound of his name, Bulma felt a tear fall from her eyes. "Yes? What is it?" She said curious wiping her eyes.

"Umm, should we go in the other room?" Gohan asked.

"Don't worry kid, Trunks won't understand it. What did you want to tell me about Vegeta?" Bulma asked.

"Let's take a seat" Gohan said pointing at the couch. Both of them sat down and got comfortable.

Bulma was now very curious to what Gohan said. _This must be pretty important for him to ask me to take a seat. He's a kid for crying out loud and he's asking me to sit down because he's going to tell me something important? _

"When the androids killed everyone there were only two fighters left, Vegeta and I. He said something about you I want to tell you." Gohan said. Bulma nodded her head.

_Was he about to tell me something that Vegeta said?_ _What could he have possibly said that would be of importance of me?_ Bulma thought.

"I know this is going to be hard for you to believe but when we were fighting and Vegeta knew he was going to die, he wanted me to deliver you a message. I wasn't exactly sure how to say this so I am sorry I am telling you a day later." Gohan said sincerely.

Bulma's eyes were wide open in surprise. _Vegeta said something about me before he died? What could have been? _Her mind wondered to her dreams of when Vegeta might one day say that he loved her. _What a farce. It is probably something about Trunks or something. I bet he wants Gohan to train him. Whatever. _Bulma thought still surprised he said something about her.

"He wanted me to train Trunks." Gohan said in an unsure tone. _How will Bulma take it? _Gohan thought as she closed her eyes as if she was anticipating this.

_I knew it. I knew he wants his son to be trained. Of course he would. If his son wasn't to be trained it would be a disgrace to his Saiyan race. Still for him to say something like that when he knew he was going to die is something. I just wish that he would have said something about me. It is strange thought that Gohan said it was about me. Maybe Vegeta wanted to get my permission to train his son? Ha! As if that would ever happen. _Bulma thought as Gohan said those words.

"It's not like I have much say in the matter. That's what happens when you sleep with a Saiyan prince." She said sarcastically. Gohan looked confused. _Oh yeah, he's still a kid. I kind of forget after what he has been through._ Bulma thought and decided to clarify herself.

"Yes you can train him. I may not want it or may not like it, but I don't really have a choice. I know he has Saiyan blood flowing through him. I wouldn't want Vegeta to be unhappy so why not fulfill his last wish." Bulma said with some sarcasm on the last sentence.

Gohan smiled. "That wasn't his last wish." He said. He knew exactly what Bulma was presuming as it was hard for him to comprehend for Vegeta to use the word _love_.

"He also said, and I quote 'Tell Bulma that I love her and that she will always be in my heart.' This was his last thing he said before I flew away."

"WHAT!"

Gohan smiled happy with the reaction. "He also said to tell Trunks that he was proud of him and always will be."

Bulma's eyes were the size of saucers. Was this some sort of joke? It had to be. She began to laugh a little as she calmed down. It was still a nervous laugh. What if it was true?

"Gohan. The word love didn't even exist in Vegeta's vocabulary. I think you may have misheard." Bulma said unconvinced as she stared at the picture on the table of Vegeta. She then looked back up to Gohan and his face said it all. He was serious. _No way._

"I- Wha- I-" Bulma tried to say something but it just wasn't coming out. _There is just no way. That cannot be possible._

"That is what he said once he realized he was no match for the androids. He still decided to fight even when I asked what would happen to you."

Gohan decided to go into the kitchen for a quite bite and leave Bulma to collect herself. He left quickly leaving Trunks to play with his toys and a stunned Bulma on the couch. _This is too unreal._ Bulma thought as a smile began to creep on her face. There was no way Gohan was playing some sick joke. He was too pure to do something like that. _It really happened. _

Bulma got up to her feet and nearly jumped into the air. She was so excited. After years she finally got Vegeta to admit that he loved her. It wasn't unrequited love. It was a real love between the two of them. Her heart was pounding. She just couldn't believe it. She skipped into the kitchen to see Gohan eating a piece of fruit.

"Gohan!"

"Yeah?"

"Vegeta really said that, huh?"

"Yep."

Now a tear of happiness fell from her eyes. _Oh my Kami. _This had made her day. She never thought this day would come. She had even convinced herself that this day wouldn't come, that it was a farce or a dream. Her mind came back to what all of Vegeta had said.

"Train my son Gohan." Bulma said with a smile.

Gohan smiled back. _The day will come that the androids will be no more. With the combined of Trunks and me, we will defeat them. _

"When do you think he will be old enough to train?" Bulma asked the boy.

"Piccolo trained me when I was four, so…" Gohan said.

_Yikes! Four years old and training! Only a saiyan. _Bulma thought.

"Gohan, my son has Saiyan blood flowing through his veins. I want you to train him as hard as you can so that you two can save this world. I want him to become a powerful warrior like Vegeta. It will be you and my son saving this bleak time." Bulma said.

"This time?" Gohan asked.

"Yes this time. I was thinking earlier today that maybe not every time will have to go through what we had. Maybe we could save this time by warning another time. Imagine if you Goku, Vegeta, and yourself had a warning. It may have made a difference." Bulma said.

"What do you mean? Time travel?" Gohan asked.

"Yes. If there is a way, I will find it. For now you train your heart out along with my son. Hope Gohan. It is a strong word, but keep it in mind. _Hope._" Bulma said.

"I will Bulma. _Hope. _That is what my dad always had and he managed to take out evil tyrants. I know it can be done with a lot of training and… _Hope._ I will train Trunks when he is ready. The day will come when the androids will be gone." Gohan said as he looked up. _Dad I hope you can see me now. I hope you can guide me through this time. I know there is still hope._

A/N- Well this story wasn't as popular as I would have imagined. I had a fun time creating it though! If you liked it, please leave a review. Let me know what you think so I can improve. Thanks again and sorry for it taking so long to bring out another chapter.

TeamAlecVolturi- Thanks so much for the review. This story is dedicated to **you **for your kind words. I hope you enjoyed it.


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